


Eminaaks and the Hunter

by AceandShadow



Series: Hell and Fire [1]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Blood and Torture, Escape, Gen, Implied/Referenced Torture, Interrogation, Minor Character Death, Reconciliation, Redemption, Rescue, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:00:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,598
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22060711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceandShadow/pseuds/AceandShadow
Summary: Draksis wants information to give the House of Winter an advantage against the Guardians and he will go to any lengths to get what he wants. He enlists the help of a Winter Captain in capturing a Scouting Hunter, who's mind was in the right place at the wrong time. Loyalties change and situations get tense as the Hunter can't provide what Draksis wants and she is left desperate when an interrogation gets out of hand
Series: Hell and Fire [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1587838
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	1. Change of Heart

**Author's Note:**

> Any speech indicated within << >> is originally spoken in a different language, but translated for reading purposes. In this instance, the language is Eliksni
> 
> This is set prior to the mission 'Scourge of Winter' from D1 so as to seem as though the Guardian has an incentive to go after Draksis around the time that the Vanguard want to take him down

'You are of Eliksni - act like it' Eminaaks reminds himself as he boards his Skiff. He isn't usually this afraid before a mission (not that he would care to admit) but then again, he's never orchestrated an abduction before. He's never been a part of a mission quite so strenuous. He usually dealt with rogue Vandals or short-range missions regarding recons and surveys. This was something that he wasn’t used to – being a part of a game-changing mission for House Winter, let alone being the leader. The Commander.

Everything has been carefully thought out by the greatest minds of House Winter by orders of Draksis, Winter Kell. As a Captain, Eminaaks hasn't been chosen for runs like this in a long time, and in the heat of the moment, upon being requested by the Kell's Guard themselves, he jumped at the opportunity with great interest. He was yet to find out what his mission was, back then.

He never envisioned himself boarding his Skiff on Venus several months later, target in sight and covert operatives on the other end guiding him to the attack. His target was a Guardian - a Hunter no less - who his crew had been tracking for their duration of residence on Venus. This Hunter made regular trips into their territory and Draksis wanted it to be stopped. But instead of a kill, he wished to speak with the Guardian, through torture or honesty, to find out everything she knew about the Light, the Traveller and what the Guardians' plans were. It would appear that he would stop at nothing to get what he wants, and he entrusted Eminaaks to deliver. He was awfully surprised to hear that Draksis was that bothered about a Guardian who wasn’t directly and issue – from what he understood, this Hunter hadn’t attacked a single Eliksni or even so much as engaged. Regardless, Eminaaks wasn't sure he was the right one for the job, but he'd give it a go, anyway. It was only his whole position within the Winter House that was on the line…

He was the one who would exfiltrate. In and out. A simple operation. It shouldn't be difficult. It was just a single Guardian. The Vandals on the comms at the target location reported in. First - Alpha team. They reported a clear run into the target zone from the west side of the old Ishtar Academy. Then - Beta team. They reported sightings of two lone Titans coming in from the South-East side of the Academy. However, they were not armed and were merely walking away. Then - Gamma team. They were covering the North of the Academy and noted several Guardian ships passing by. No landings yet. Last to report was the Omega team. No news is good news on the South of Ishtar - they were expecting the Hunter to come from there. Omega's job was the hardest. They had to report the second _anyone_ passes through their zone and they had to stop anyone who wasn't the Hunter from entering the target zone or it was game over for Winter and for Eminaaks. Eminaaks had chosen his team personally for these reasons. He made them undergo rigorous testing to see their true potentials and to make sure that they were definitely up to the task – with everything on the line, he couldn’t afford anyone to falter... _they_ couldn’t afford to falter.

Hours passed. They anticipated this. The Hunter had no solid schedule - just that she would pass through at some point in the day. It was the same day of the week every week almost without fail. They all knew - they tracked her for months to be completely sure. There was no lack of effort to make this mission virtually fool proof and no expense spared. Eminaaks wondered how he would explain to Draksis that, on this particular day, she did not appear, just in case it got to that point. How he hoped that it wouldn’t get to that point as he wholly dreaded the slow stare that Draksis would give him – the slow burn that would see its way into his very core and turn him to dust. Disappointing Draksis was not an option at this point. Eminaaks had already got a plan set in case he should fail – if he does not return with the target, he’d best not return at all – and he should leave no witnesses. That means his entire team would have to die and, while he didn’t want that, the sheer pain he would feel in failing his one job would be worse than the several deaths of his own teammates on his conscience. He was mentally prepared for that deed, but not mentally prepared for the wrath of Draksis.

With a loud crackle in his ear, Eminaaks heard the Omega Vandals sound the signal for the incoming Hunter. This was his moment. He passed the message onto the other teams to run their new posts to stop any reinforcements into the landing zone. Alpha corrupted transmat beacons, Beta cloaked the surrounding area and Gamma had a Wretch and Marauder at every entrance. This Hunter was not going to get away. Too much depended on it. Eminaaks hid behind a rock to study the Hunter's movement, to study her weaponry and to study her skills. He knew she was fast and so he would need to be faster and he knew that she was clever, so he needed to be more so. She paced over to one of the buildings and began a descent into a dark basement and one of the Gamma Vandals said;

<<You should strike on her way back up>>

Eminaaks shook his head. That would be foolish.

<<We can't wait that long. It's not a chance I'm willing to take. Not here. Not now. I shall go in after her. Gamma close in on my coordinates. We do not need such vast room>> And with that, Eminaaks also descended into the Ishtar basements, two cloaked Marauders in tow.

It was dark and dusty in these basements and Eminaaks struggled to see ahead of him and instead followed the shimmer of light the Hunter's Ghost had provided. It wasn't enough to stop him stumbling over wires and boxes, but just enough to know when to keep back and where to go. Eventually, everyone stopped, and they all found themselves in a large room where the Ghost powered up an old lamp. Eminaaks and the Marauders hung back in the corridor so as to avoid being spotted, but it wasn't enough. The Hunter's Ghost had alerted the Hunter to their presence.

"The Fallen are here! Hurry!", he shouted. One of the Marauders jumped in and attempted to trap the Ghost in an anti-transmit cage but missed several times. The Ghost was quick and nimble. The Hunter whipped out her sword and begun swiping at the Marauder, when the other one joined in. After a few tense moments of scrapping with cuts here and swipes there, ether everywhere, both Marauders were dead and the Ghost in the anti-transmat cage. Dropping her sword, the Hunter fell to her knees in desperation, scrambling to unlock the cage. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d ever been involved in an attack with the Fallen. When she goes to the Moon, which is more often than Venus, she has everything she needs to deal with the Hive, but because she doesn’t encounter the Fallen at all when she patrols Venus, so she was very underprepared. This played as an advantage for Eminaaks.

"Something's not right. Marauders don't wander in twos and they certainly don't carry these with them," the Ghost said.

"Be quiet a second. I almost have it…" the Hunter had almost cracked the lock when the Ghost shouted;

"Captain to your left!"

With great power, Eminaaks had batted the Hunter across the room and her back hit the wall behind her, denting the plasterwork. Shaken up, she scrambled for her sidearm only to be met with another punch from Eminaaks. He was not about to let her get a shot in edgeways. Blood began to drip from her face and her neck, and she tried once more to grab her sidearm and emptied the magazine into the Captain's chest. Most of the bullets ricocheted off his chest plate, but some found their way into the weak spots and punctured his chest. He grunted in pain and lunged for her neck and grabbed it with his left upper arm and lifted her up, choking her as he did. Struggling for air, she kicked and clawed at his wrists and he threw her across the room once more. Her helmet cracked and she fell to the floor. For the first time ever, Eminaaks had seen the face of a Guardian – an Awoken Guardian. More blood began to emanate from her face as the struggled to pick herself back up, her arm broken, her face bruised and her Ghost not able to heal her. Eminaaks picked her up by the shoulders and turned her back to him as he wrapped all four of his arms around her - his lower arms restraining her and his upper arms around her neck. She panicked and stole one last look at her Ghost, tears rolling down her face, as she took one more breath and her fight faded. She collapsed in a heap on the floor.

It had been done. The Guardian was subdued, and the Ghost could do nothing about it.

The plan, however, did not involve any deaths, yet two Marauders would not be returning home.

Eminaaks tied the Guardian's hands behind her back and threw her over his shoulder to carry her onto his Skiff. He picked up the cage her Ghost was in and began walking to the surface, but the Ghost fought his hardest to break the cage by ramming into it. Eminaaks laughed as the Ghost couldn’t take anymore and fainted.

His honourary tech-whiz Marauder back at his Skiff had intercepted an SOS the Ghost had tried to send out;

"Vanguard emergency channel, access code 0306 - to all who can hear; my Guardian is the target of a Fallen abduction orchestrated by the House of Winter. I believe they intend to hold her hostage. Please send reinforcements. Coordinates encrypted in this message"

Eminaaks looked at the Marauder and smirked. Job well done indeed.

As the Skiff landed back at the lair of House Winter and Eminaaks was greeted by the Kell's Guard, Guardian slumped over his shoulder, he welled up with pride - he had done his Kell proud. Draksis awaited his return in his Throne room.

<<She is still breathing, Draksiskel. Do not fear>>

<<You have proven to be a valuable asset to House Winter, Eminaaks. I am impressed>> Draksis stood up and stepped closer to Eminaaks. He looked upon his prize and smiled, all teeth visible. <<You and I, my new friend, are going to get to know each other very well as of tomorrow. Very well indeed. You are going to tell me everything you know. Your Light depends on it…>> he placed a finger under the Guardian's chin to lift her head, which was still covered in blood. He snuck a glance at her golden eyes. She was beautiful. A stunning example of a Guardian – he had never seen a female Guardian up close let alone without her helmet. He imagined her purity underneath her thousands of bruises. He imagined her honesty underneath her hundreds of cuts. His smile beamed all the brighter and Eminaaks could suddenly see his evil intentions with this Guardian. No honest – humane – method of interrogation was going to be used, here, and he could see the outcome already. He also knew that he had to be a part of it. Draksis waved his hands.

<<Clean her. I must have her fresh and ready for morning>>

<<Yes Draksiskel>> Eminaaks replied. As he turned to leave the Throne room, something began to tingle inside of him. Something about Draksis' plan did not feel right. Suddenly, Eminaaks didn't feel like he was doing the right thing. He stopped in the corridor to look over his shoulder. He could hear Draksis celebrating, cheering and laughing, yet he did not feel the same. Something felt very wrong. He continued his walk towards the nearby facilities to wash the blood from the Hunter, careful not to damage her eyes as he found them stunning as well. Something about this Guardian made him realise that maybe they all weren’t a violent as he was led to believe.

Underneath the armour and the skin, they still had beating hearts and minds with morals. He leant into the Hunter’s body. He could hear her heartbeat loud and clear. He studied her bruises and her scars as he ran his fingers along her smooth, dainty skin so blue. Her armour was cracked and, in some places, broken and he wondered what stories this Guardian would have to tell as he poked the weak points in her armour, curving his fingers underneath the plates.

If Draksis was right about anything that day, it was that this Guardian was beautiful. To hear her heartbeat with his own ears, to feel her skin with his own hands and to see her eyes with his own...it had allowed him to truly comprehend the existence of the Lightbearers – that they are to be fought alongside. Not against.

He sighed as he placed the seemingly lifeless Guardian in a chair and tied her to it, careful not to cut her with the ropes or damage her any further. Her body twitched and she groaned a little – she was waking up. Eminaaks knew he had to stay out of sight of the Hunter at all times, until Draksis gave him orders to do otherwise. He didn’t know how much time he had left before she would fully awaken, but he also had to make sure she couldn’t get away, as much as he would like to let her go after guessing what Draksis had planned for her.

A few hours had passed, and the Hunter had fully awakened, and Eminaaks was still in the room. He heard her panic with confusion as she had no clue where she was or what was happening – something Eminaaks had to block out for much of the night, all the while, he couldn't help but wonder if he'd made the right choice - if he really wanted Draksis to be his Kell.


	2. Interrogation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draksis has entered the room and is ready for his information, but is displeased, to say the least, when the Hunter can't give it to him

The Hunter sat in a chair in a cold, dark room awaiting Draksis' arrival. Eminaaks also waited, but in the far corner where she couldn't see him. Her hands were bound behind her back and a hood was over her head. Eminaaks had been considering his alliances overnight and had concluded that he would see what Draksis would do before he made any moves.

The Hunter had awoken in this position as Eminaaks left her tied up from the night before after he’d cleaned her. She had woken up sooner than Eminaaks had hoped, as within an hour of being cleaned up and sat down, she’d begun crying out. It had started in confidence as if she feared nothing, but it quickly changed tone and she began screaming, attempting to gain attention – attention better off not being drawn to her, given the circumstances and Eminaaks was left with no choice. He tied a ragged piece of cloth over her mouth, silencing her because, while the last thing he wanted to do was hurt the Hunter any more than he already had, he had to answer to someone more scary and of a much higher order and keep Draksis happy to stop him from hurting her and ensuring that the Hunter wasn’t screaming all night was a sure way to do it – as little as he wanted to be a part of it all at this point.

To ensure that he was safe from her prying eyes, he had placed the hood over her head and sat at the back of the room and waited for those several hours leading up to this point.

She had calmed down after a few hours of nothingness and soon after, silence rang throughout the room, although Eminaaks still couldn’t sleep. He was consumed with guilt. How he wished he could reverse everything he had done.

The Hunter felt as if someone was in the room with her, still, but she couldn’t be sure anymore – not after all the time she’d been blinded since last contact. She tried her best to hide her shaking, but Eminaaks had already noticed her hands trembling behind her. All this time he believed Guardians were fearless, that nothing could scare them. But now...now he’d realised that they still feel. They feel emotions – fear, happiness, sadness...everything the Eliksni could feel. At the end of the day, the only things that separated them was their physical appearances and the Light. What had he done?

The door slammed shut as Draksis entered and the slam echoed through the room making both the Hunter and Eminaaks jump. The Hunter could hear the loud footsteps approach her as well as heavy breathing from the Kell as he leant over her. He paused for a second – just enough for her to second-guess his proximity to her – then he tore off the hood from the Hunter's head and she flinched, squinting her eyes against the light as she couldn't shield them. The Kell knelt in front of her and studied her for what felt like an eternity before he spoke. He wouldn’t take his eyes off the golden glow of her own and this made her very uncomfortable, but in return, she had never been this close to a Kell and she was amazed and terrified at the same time as she had heard of their existence and knew everything about them, but even with all her knowledge, nothing compared to being in the presence of one. It allowed her to put her knowledge into context and really gain a perspective on their intimidating appearances. Especially this one.

He carefully removed the gag from her mouth.

"A fine Guardian you are. Do you have a name?" His English was far better than both the Hunter and Eminaaks had anticipated, but regardless, she took a breath and responded calmly.

"Araeya"

"Araeya. I heard you gave my team a hard time, yesterday, Araeya…" Draksis sneered and took a side glance at Eminaaks. Eminaaks didn’t know what to say to that. He hadn’t told Draksis anything as to what had happened except about the members of the team that didn’t come home. Maybe he should have laid off on the description with the encounter the Marauders had with the Hunter. Her sword had made a mess, to say the least.

Araeya said nothing and Draksis stood up. He towered over her and cast a large, dark shadow over her body practically consuming the light around her. She couldn’t look away. She couldn’t hide her fear from his gaze. "I suppose I should introduce myself. Draksis. Winter Kell,” he paused and looked down on her. Then he continued. “Your captor." He stared at Araeya with all four of his eyes trained on her. Still, she said nothing

Eminaaks remained silent at the back of the room and watched as Draksis continued to hold the conversation with this Hunter. His urge to push him away was getting stronger the longer this went on, but he couldn’t do anything that would put the Hunter’s life at risk. As it was, he wasn’t so sure she would see her freedom again. Not after this.

"Do you want to know why you are here, Araeya?" he asked in a spiteful tone. Araeya said nothing. "Hm. Stubborn. I suppose this is what you've been trained to do…" he leant forward so that his face was inches away from Araeya's. She leant back as far as she could for, she could smell his sweat and couldn't help but scrunch her face up at the stench.

"Do I look scary? Good. Then, my dear, we shall begin." He stepped back a bit and unsheathed two sparking knives from his holsters and held them in his lower arms. Araeya looked at them, eyes as wide as they would go. "You are going to tell me everything you know about your Light, your Vanguard and your plans in exchange for your life. You could say that it's a choice - your life, or theirs. But if you choose yours, you've doomed theirs." Draksis moved slowly back towards Araeya who, too, had begun sweating. He ran the blade of one of his knives slowly down the side of her face and she shivered. He smiled. He enjoyed striking fear into the people who appear all-powerful. It made him feel power he rarely feels on his own. "Now talk to me, child. What are your Vanguard's plans for us?" he said, knife now pointed at Araeya's throat. She eyed the tip of the blade and opened her mouth to speak. Very little sound came out.

"I don't know," she whispered. This angered Draksis. He slapped her with his left upper arm, leaving a bruise on her cheek. Eminaaks jumped and Draksis glared at him. ‘Such a coward’ he thought. Eminaaks never seen Draksis get violent before. Tears began streaming down Araeya's face once more but she still let out no sound.

"I'm going to ask again, and this time, I'm not going to hear lies from the little Guardian, clear?" he spat at her as she looked away in fear. "What are your Vanguard's plans for us?" he asked again this time almost shouting to be sure she definitely heard him, as if she couldn’t before.

This time, Araeya didn't say a single word and so, without hesitation, Draksis took one of his shock blades and plunged it into Araeya's right leg and she let out a scream that could be heard from all over the Winter lair. The knife still in her leg, Draksis used his upper arms and grabbed her neck and pulled her in close, his grip unfathomable, choking the Hunter.

"When I go to enough trouble to organise a team for one Guardian, I expect nothing less than that Guardian to cooperate. You are not cooperating," he hissed in her ear. He pushed her back into her chair, hard and removed the knife from her leg in force - so much so that she screamed again. Blood came pouring out of her legs and she began to panic. "It appears we have a time limit, now…"

"Please stop! I don't know anything. I just run scouting missions. I report enemy numbers, hideouts and any unmapped territories - I know nothing of the Vanguard's plans for you…" Araeya pleaded, her eyes now closed and her face looking away. Eminaaks could see her hands behind her back wriggling and struggling. The pain was so intense, but there was nothing she could do about it. There was nothing he could do about it. She still had no idea that he was even there, and he wasn’t sure if that made the situation better or worse.

Draksis slammed a hand on her bleeding leg to slow the blood loss and leant in again, never changing his gaze from her eyes. "Enemy numbers, you say? And hideouts? Tell me more…" His knives were back to pointing at her.

"I would, but you kidnapped me before I could finish my mission. Everything has changed since my last report. Once my reports get handed in, they’re acted upon. Strikes are ordered. Raids are organised. We never leave anything unfinished – not even the small mobs. That’s why I go out each week – the enemies will have attempted to regroup and it’s my job to catch them out. To stop them from doing that."

Draksis pondered for a moment, never losing eye contact with the Hunter. The fear displayed in her eyes was a picture of success in his. He released her leg and laid the knife edge on her throat. She whimpered.

"You're sure?" He leant in further. "You're telling the truth?"

Eminaaks also leant in. He felt as uneasy as Araeya. There was so much uncertainty around this interrogation that there was no way he could relax even slightly. He began to wonder who was more afraid of what Draksis would do next; him or her...

"Yes," said Araeya shaking. “Every word.” A moment passed and neither of them broke eye contact. Neither of them moved even slightly. Then, without warning, Draksis slit her throat and stood up leaving Araeya scrambling for air once more.

"I don't believe you. You would do anything to save your blue skin – even if that means lying to the very entity that threatens your existence, Lightbearer. I realise your people are somewhat powerful, Araeya, but I don’t believe they are efficient – as proven, here,” he smirked. “If I can't get the truth out of you, then you are of no use to me." Draksis turned his back, reached for his hand cannon and fired it at Araeya's side - a shot so solid that she collapsed on the floor, crying and screaming in pain, her stomach open and bleeding out. She tensed, curled and struggled to contain the bleeding, but she was still bound and helpless, so she feared for her life - especially without her Ghost to heal her.

Draksis turned around to project orders at Eminaaks but made eye contact with the Hunter as she lay on the floor. He bent down and rolled her onto her back as she wriggled, still trying to free her hands. He placed a hand on her stomach, over the wound and her movements immediately ceased as she became paralysed with fear. He then dug his claws into the wound and removed the bullet lodged in there, his hands covered in her blood and she screamed in pain.

He lifted the bullet up and studied it carefully, then turned his gaze back to Araeya who looked as though she could’ve passed out at any moment. He smiled at her and stood back up, walking towards the door.

<<Finish her off, Eminaaks. Dispose of the body. I want no trace of her here>> Araeya turned to see the shadowy figure that had been stood in the room the whole time and, if she wasn’t afraid before, then she certainly was, then. Her worry, other than surviving, was what they were both saying – she couldn’t speak Eliksni.

Eminaaks nodded. <<What of her Ghost?>>

<<A trophy for my Throne room…>> Draksis chuckled as he left the room, whispering to himself as he closed the door. <<Lightbearers are so weak when they face real challengers>>

Eminaaks waited until he could no longer hear Draksis' footsteps before he darted across the room and fell at the Guardian's side. Araeya flinched and started crying. She had been hiding her feelings as best she could in the presence of Draksis so as not to show her true fear.

"Please! No! I don't want to die!"

Eminaaks looked at Araeya for a second and reached round to where her hands were bound and broke the restraints, freeing her arms. She immediately clenched her bullet wound on her side and Eminaaks picked her up and leant her against the wall where he placed one hand over her bleeding leg and gently laid another on the side of her neck. He stared at her for a while. He took heed of all her bruises across her face, the scars around her neck and the gashes over her arms. She was covered in blood from head to toe. His Kell had inflicted this on her. His Kell was capable of inflicting death upon someone who didn't deserve it - something the Eliksni had never used to do. This was the Kell he'd looked up to since his arrival on Earth. Now, he didn't even recognise him. He dried the tears from her eyes and wiped the blood from her face. She could see clearly, again.

"You're helping me?" Araeya had calmed down a bit, realising Eminaaks was attempting to help her. She didn’t know if this Captain could even understand her or if she could trust him, but he reached into his belt and pulled out a bandage that he’d used to patch his own wounds and began wrapping it around her leg. He then took some more from his belt and began to wrap it around her waist in the hope of slowing the blood loss, all the while partially fascinated with the colour of Guardian blood and the look of it. It was very different to theirs and he’d seen it when he attacked her, but not this close. He sat back and sighed, his hand tender against Araeya’s neck.

"I not know who my Kell is. But it not the monster who was in here…" Eminaaks looked from the Hunter to the floor in shame. He was the one who allowed all this to happen.

"I sorry I take you. It was order. This was not."

"Where's my Ghost?"

Eminaaks couldn't contain his fear. He knew Draksis was going to kill it. But there might be time, yet…

"I get him for you. Do not move," and he stood up to leave, conflicted that she might die while he is gone. He didn't want that to happen.

"Wait. Can I know your name? I will speak of you in the City and your kindness…" Araeya knew this was his fault, but he was willing to put himself right and if one could do so, then so could others - and she would help him. She let go of her wound with one hand and grunted as she reached up to grab his lower arm and looked into his eyes. He could see that she was grateful, but he would not be satisfied until she was safe back on Earth – even if that meant he had to deliver her personally and risk the wrath of the Vanguard.

"Eminaaks."


	3. Nightmare Incarnate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Araeya is left on her own and it's an anxious wait for Eminaaks to find her Ghost, but it gives her time to reflect on her situation and devise a way to escape - at least until Draksis returns with a vengeance. He attempts to finish what he started, but not without having a little fun in the meantime. It was just a question of if Eminaaks could get back in time

Araeya sat against the wall, arms over her waist, clutching at the bandages that Eminaaks had used to bind her wounds. She was breathing heavily, still in pain from moments before. She couldn’t shake the image of Draksis from her head. He’d left her both physically and emotionally scarred – this would take some explaining to the Vanguard and no words that she could find would even begin to cover what she had gone through. No words would do the Kell justice. She sat up a bit more so she could see more of her body and see her wounds more clearly. Over her stomach, the bandages had quickly turned red with her blood as the bullet wound was deep. On her leg, the same thing was happening. The knife that Draksis had used was one that she knew only Kells and Archons carry with them – it was a special cut to resemble the House and each blade held a special arc charge that, on impact, would explode into the wound and therefore create a deeper, more complicated cut. Araeya had studied the weapons of the Fallen for years and so he understood everything that they used. Something she couldn’t understand, though, was what Draksis really wanted from her.

He had brutally tortured her to find out the Vanguard’s plans, but she couldn’t understand what he would do if she knew and told him their plans. What gave him the idea that a mere Scouting Hunter would know plans of such high order?

In all her thoughts, Araeya hadn’t realised how stiff she’d become from sitting against the wall and so she tried to move. She looked at her hands and her wrists. They had rope burn on them from when she’d tried to struggle free from her bindings and she winced every time she tried to help herself up. She looked at her armour, broken and useless, and she tried to take it off. She was nervous about removing it while she was open and vulnerable. Ikora had always taught her that the armour never comes off – not even when you’re at the Tower – because you never know what could happen, and in the position she was in, anything could happen. Piece by piece, she tore off her amour to free herself so she could try and move.

She didn’t get far before she heard heavy footsteps coming from the corridor outside the room. She recognised those footsteps from anywhere and she began to panic. She knew, if she were to survive another encounter with the Winter Kell, she needed to be silent, but she also needed to move to somewhere out of sight.

Eminaaks had been gone for almost an hour and she’d begun to wonder if he would ever come back. She feared the worst.

Lost in her worries, she stumbled and fell onto the floor. The ground, as hard as it was, made her grunt as she couldn’t restrict her fall and her head hit hard. The footsteps stopped outside the door and the heavy breathing got louder. Araeya whimpered and she tried to pick herself back up so that she wasn’t in the middle of the room, but to no avail. The door swung open and Draksis stood in the doorway, blocking the light. Araeya stayed on the floor and tried not to draw attention to herself, limiting her breathing and lying very still – ‘playing dead.’

Draksis was disappointed to find Araeya still in the room where he’d left her, especially after his words to Eminaaks were to leave ‘no trace of her,’ but to see that faint movement of her chest bobbing up and down showing that she still lived, despite being weak and in great pain, made him question Eminaaks’ allegiance. To show that he didn’t care for Eminaaks or the Hunter, he would hurt Eminaaks by hurting the Hunter, also reasserting his dominance as Winter Kell, showing the Fallen under his rule that he is not to be messed with. Draksis slowly stepped over to where she was laid and knelt down next to her. He, too, was very quiet as he carefully pulled out his hand cannon and pressed it against the back of her head. Araeya breathed in sharply and tensed.

“You’re quite the persistent Guardian, aren’t you?” he asked as he pressed the gun harder to her head. “Where’s Eminaaks? I asked him to deal with you...” Draksis was angry at the situation. He didn’t know whether Eminaaks had lost the battle and took off, took off before he could even start or if he was even still alive. He didn’t care.

He was alone with the Hunter and that was all he cared about – a chance he had never gotten before.

He studied the Hunter from head to toe and appreciated her – her figure, her skin and her strength. He placed his hand on her back and ran his fingers down it, feeling her body and examining the many inflictions and feeling her breathing as she panicked, not knowing what he was doing. He carefully felt every bruise and every scar beneath his fingers, wondering where they had all come from. He came to the bandage around her waist covering the wound he had caused hours prior and lifted them off. He smiled as he saw the size of the wound and how deep it seemed, circling his fingers around the edge, Araeya wincing with the wound still tender. He then turned his attention to her wrists as she laid her arms out to the side and he took note of the burns from her restraints and the bruising on her arms. He held one in his hand and stroked the back of it. Despite the bruising, her skin was still soft beneath his fingers and Araeya could feel his claws brush over her wrists, but she closed her eyes in fear of what he was trying to do. He had concluded that she was a determined Hunter – one to be admired. He liked that. Draksis lifted the bandages off Araeya’s leg and tossed them aside so that he could look at the markings that his knife had made, and he smiled even more as they resembled Winter at its finest.

If this Hunter was ever to return home, she would bear the torture of Winter and she would be the embodiment of fear, spreading word of her encounter with the House of Winter so that all Lightbearers would know that Draksis was not to messed with. However, he had gone too far. He couldn’t allow the Hunter to return home. She had seen too much and, as Eminaaks wasn’t around, Draksis had decided to have some fun with her before he finished what Eminaaks should have done.

“Turn over,” he said when he had finished studying Araeya. Slowly and carefully, Araeya turned herself over and came face-to-face with Draksis’ hand cannon. She changed her sight to match his and saw his intentions in his eyes. He took great delight in making eye contact with the Hunter, her eyes depicted everything he wanted to see – fear. Courage. An exasperated glow. He was mesmerised by her eyes. It was something he was not used to, but it didn’t change his mind for he knew what he wanted to do. He pressed his hand against her lower tummy, feeling the skin where the wound was - it was rough and Araeya winced as he pressed down hard. He didn't stop there. He lowered his hands from her tummy to her upper thighs and stroked them gently, feeling the muscles in her legs. He pondered for a while, wondering how strong she really was. “Where is Eminaaks?” he asked again.

Araeya took her time to answer. “I don’t know,” she said quietly. Draksis didn’t like that answer.

“I told him to deal with you. Not once did anyone see him leave this room and come to me saying that he did and since you’re sat here in front of me, you were the last to see him. Now, where is he?!” His voice echoed across the room and in his anger, Draksis fired a shot from his gun just past Araeya’s head and she screamed – a warning shot.

“I’m telling you I don’t know!” she shouted in fear. “He came to me, but he didn’t stay long.”

“Did he give you these bandages?”

Araeya wasn’t the best liar and it was in her best interest to protect Eminaaks, hoping he would return with her Ghost, but she couldn’t think of anything, so she looked away. Draksis chuckled and leaned over her, stroking her neck and feeling the cut he’d made, picking at the scar that had formed in its place.

“Little Eminaaks thinks he can help the Lightbearers as if they will accept him as one of their own!” He looked down at Araeya again, her face blank as she stared at the Kell, arms still outstretched to her sides. He leant forward so that his face was inches away from hers. “He is a silly Captain. He would fit right in with the Guardians...” His lower arms reached towards Araeya and touched her shoulders and she flinched, but his touch was tender as he rubbed them, feeling her skin under his fingers again. How he hoped to have a Guardian of his own, one day.

He holstered his hand cannon, freeing his upper arms. But without warning he used them to grab Araeya’s throat and he picked her up so that her feet were no longer in contact with the ground and he squeezed, choking her and making her squirm before throwing her across the room and into the wall with such force that the bricks cracked as she hit them. He quickly fired another warning shot into the wall next to her, causing her to jump so much that she fell sideways onto the floor and struggled to get herself back up.

“What do you want from me?” she said weakly, struggling to find her voice and clutching at her neck as Draksis wandered back in her direction. He knelt in front of her again.

“I originally wanted information from you, but it seemed like I wasn’t going to get that, so instead I’ve decided to run an experiment. I’m going to work out how brave you Guardians really are...” His smile stretched from ear to ear, all his teeth showing and his eyes shining in the shade of evil. He knew that Guardians are only as strong as their Ghosts are, but he also knew where Araeya’s Ghost was – in his Throne Room – meaning there was nothing she could do in her condition that would even so much as threaten Draksis, so he pulled her up so that she was upright again and held his shock blade at her side. Araeya shook with true fear as she also knew she would be no match for the Winter Kell in her state.

He used one of his fingers to gently lift her chin as he had done the previous morning when Eminaaks first brought her before him. She trembled as he looked straight into her eyes that were welling up with tears, examining the fear in them, staring into her soul, shooting daggers into her mind. His finger left her chin and was replaced by his hand holding the side of her face, covered in her blood and feeling her warmth.

“I’ve never had the pleasure of truly seeing a Guardian in all its purity. I’m glad he hasn’t finished you off. This moment wouldn’t be here otherwise...” he said calmly and quietly, his attention all on Araeya. His hand was cold against her cheeks as if he had never seen compassion – like he was to be seen as the cold-blooded leader for his duration as Kell of Winter.

He lowered his hand down to her neck, using his claws to scratch her as he did so, leaving a scar from her jawline down to her collarbone, all the while Araeya was paralysed – she could not take her eyes off of him. He wrapped his hand around her neck carefully, his whole hand completely around it. There was no malice in his grip until it tightened, and she gasped for air, her hands around his arm, struggling to pull him off her, but he lifted her up and just pressed her further against the wall.

His face never changed. There was no warning. He calmly strangled her, knowing he didn’t need much effort because she didn’t have the physical strength to fight back. Her face showed true panic as she also knew she didn’t have the physical strength to fight back. She strained, scrunching her face in pain as Draksis dug his claws in. A part of her hoped he would finish her off so that she wouldn’t have to see his four evil eyes staring at her in all her weakness. Guardians weren’t there to strike fear into the enemy, but to make them remember who was in charge and who to worry about. They were not subjects of torture and she’d let this happen. She allowed herself to be put in that position whereby the enemy could take full advantage of her. She had given Draksis the wrong image of a Guardian. When she got out, she would give Draksis a true piece of the Guardians.

Draksis held Araeya like that until she couldn’t take it anymore, until her eyes began to lose their glow, and then he released her, and she fell forward onto her knees, breathing deeply...gasping. Draksis stood up and walked around her.

“Guardians,” he began. “They claim to be the saviours of this world, yet this world was doomed before we came here. You claim to be gods. All-powerful. Omni-benevolent. Yet here you sit, powerless next to a Kell. All I had to do was remove your Ghost. That’s all anyone has to do and your kind fall to your knees.” He spat as he spoke, but not once did Araeya look up from the floor. Not until Draksis grabbed her head to lift it up and hold his knife against her throat, pressing the edge into her skin causing it to bleed slightly. “I could kill you right here, right now and you would stay dead. No coming back. No Light and the Guardians would be a man down.” He paused. Draksis heard footsteps from the other end of the corridor. He pushed Araeya to the floor and she grunted, weak, as he tip-toed to the door to listen to who it was.

He could hear Eminaaks approaching the room, but he was mumbling to someone. He couldn’t make out who it was, but he scrambled back over to where Araeya was, and stood on top of her, legs either side of her waist and crouched, one lower arm pressed into her back holding her on the floor, the other lower arm dragging the shock blade against the hard surface, scraping the edge as it went. He had his two upper arms propping him up next to Araeya’s head as he leant over her so that his head was slightly above hers and whispered in her ear.

“Not a sound.”

Araeya could feel the weight of the Kell on top of her, making her panic even more, but to heed what Draksis had said, she gulped and swallowed her fears. She tuned into the sound of the mumbling outside the door and she attempted to push herself up to better hear what was being said and she felt Draksis’ hands leave her back and she couldn’t see them next to her head – he had stood up. The door handle shifted slowly and quietly as someone attempted to enter and just has Araeya thought she could try and get up, she felt Draksis’ breath over her head as he grabbed her from behind and covered her mouth, his knife held against her throat. She struggled as he forced her arms down by her side, where he held her tightly, one arm across her chest and the other around her waist. He dragged her to the back of the room where it was darkest, knelt down and pulled Araeya closer to his body so that she stood in front of him, between his knees.

He felt her shaking under his arms and he pressed his chin against her head, his hand silencing her crying. His eyes never strayed from the door.

He leaned into her ear again.

“Try anything funny and it will not end well.” He whispered in an attempt to intimidate Araeya, his breath pungent and his voice raspy against her ears. A part of him hoped the door wouldn’t open so that he wasn’t interrupted as he wanted to test the full extent of willpower that Araeya had. Even Araeya didn’t know how much she had.

No Guardian is sure of their willpower until it is tested in the most strenuous of circumstances. Araeya was one of the few Guardians who seemingly had unlimited willpower and she had no idea of her own strength. Even her ordeal with the Kell of Winter didn’t prove her strength. She could survive the most gruelling experience – one that held anguish, ten-fold.

She didn’t know it yet, but her willpower would save the universe from a Kell gone mad, a being and his son who could create his own army of other entities, harnessing new powers and abilities. She would save the planet from curious minds playing God with technology unfathomable to them. She would save the Guardians from a being who would attempt to steal the Light and threaten the entire solar system with a single weapon, stop an entity from unravelling time itself, find and awaken an ancient Warmind and stop a group of mutated Fallen and their Awoken leader going rogue and destroying the Asteroid Belt and everyone on it. Her willpower was something that most Guardians could only wish for. It could get her through the situation with Draksis as it would get her through anything and everything.

She stood quietly in the harmful arms of the Kell, shuffling, as the door in front of her opened slowly. The figure of a Captain stood in the doorway, but no Ghost in sight and she wondered what had happened for him to be as late as he was. He walked in, knife in hand and slowly crept to the light switch, but Araeya wasn’t going to wait any longer. She needed his attention and she needed it fast.

Despite the Kell’s words, she tried to scream and when the light came on, there stood Eminaaks in shock at what he saw – Araeya’s life in the hands of his deranged Kell and his hands covered in her blood. 


	4. Reconciliation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eminaaks has returned with Araeya's Ghost to see the mess that he has left her with. He knows he must take a stand if he wants to give Araeya a chance at survival, but Ghost has other ideas. None of this is without a cost - one too high for Araeya's liking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A brief step back is taken at the beginning to show Eminaaks' point of view upon entering the room, including the conversation he was having with Araeya's Ghost (the mumbling that Draksis heard in the previous chapter). But it picks back up again once he has entered the room.

Ghost reacquired, Eminaaks quickly ran through the maze of corridors and back down into the basement where he left Araeya. He was breathless before he started for many reasons; He was fatigued by the wounds sustained from the Kell’s Guard as they were well-trained elite assassins. He was lucky to escape with all his limbs intact. He was still surprised he’d gotten to the Ghost in time and was excited to bring him back to Araeya so that she can survive. He was also aware that time was precious because the Vanguard, by now, would have realised Araeya had not returned with her report and had probably sent scouts out to find her and that she was still injured and needed healing as soon as possible.

The Ghost was tentative at first and wasn’t all keen in following a Fallen Captain through a maze of corridors, but when he saw Eminaaks had Araeya’s blood on him, he knew she needed help and any Fallen would know to remove any evidence of Guardian contact before wandering out again. He bit the bullet and followed Eminaaks down into the basements.

As they approached the room where Eminaaks had left Araeya, they hesitated. They could both hear faint noises coming from inside, but these weren’t the sounds of Araeya trying to breathe or attempting to get up and there was definitely more than one person in there. It sounded like the mumbling of broken English/Eliksni and the scraping of a blade against the floor and the noise churned Eminaaks’ insides.

He told the Ghost to hide in the barrel opposite the door while he went inside.

“What can I do from there? I can heal her. Make her stronger so that she can fight. Every minute I spend in the...barrel we are losing her,” the Ghost said in a panic, careful not to make too much sound.

“Draksis sees you, you both dead. I dead. Then what happens? Draksis continue another day. Find other Guardian. He too skilled to miss shot on Little Light,” Eminaaks replied. The Ghost hid in the barrel as he was told but peeked through a small hole so that he could keep an eye on the situation and make his own judgement as to when to run in and heal his Guardian. Eminaaks opened the door slowly. The sounds stopped abruptly with a sudden thud, but he could still hear heavy breathing coming from the back of the room.

He slowly walked forwards, towards the dark end of the room and stopped. He waited, knife in hand. He couldn’t see Araeya anywhere. He looked around and, on the floor where he’d left the Hunter, there was more blood splattered across the walls, which he thought shouldn’t have been possible since she let him bind her wounds. With that thought, he noticed the bandages he’d used scattered the other side of the room where more blood was spread across the floor. He took note of broken pieces of Araeya’s armour that were spread across the room. Eminaaks panicked and wanted to know what had happened while he was gone. He knew he shouldn’t have left her alone, but at the time, he felt like he had no other choice.

Then a muffled scream coming from the back of the room made Eminaaks jump and he rushed to switch the light on.

On the other side knelt Draksis on one knee holding Araeya to his body, his two lower arms wrapped tightly around her waist and chest, holding her arms down. He had his upper right hand over her mouth and his upper left holding a knife to her throat once more. Her eyes glowed with fear as she struggled to free herself from the Kell’s grasp. He looked upon the Hunter and saw nothing but blood, cuts and bruises. He could no longer see her pale blue skin – she looked like she had been butchered, battered...truly tortured. Eminaaks stood in silent fury at what his Kell had become.

<<I asked you to do one job; bring me the Guardian so I could do what was best for my House. When I was done, I asked you to dispose of her and leave no trace,>> he paused for a second, gripping tighter to the Hunter, making her squirm. His grip was unquantifiable.

<<Does this look disposed of?! Does this look like no trace has been left behind?! DOES THIS LOOK LIKE A JOB WELL EXECUTED?!>> Draksis shook Araeya as he was bellowing across the room and Araeya stared at Eminaaks as he stared back, ashamed. He wasn’t thinking about how he’d betrayed his Kell, but instead he was thinking about how it was he who’d subjected this Guardian to this torture. If he’d known from the beginning that this would be the outcome, then he would never have taken the opportunity. He looked upon Araeya’s face and saw the bruises that had come from him back at the Ishtar Academy. Then he looked back into her eyes and saw her weeping.

<<ANSWER ME!>> Draksis was getting impatient.

<<I tried, Draksiskel. But I couldn’t do it>> Eminaaks replied, dropping his knife. All the while, the Ghost could still see his Guardian restrained by Draksis. He could see everything unfolding before him and he needed to do something, but he couldn’t while Draksis still had a hold on her.

<<Couldn’t? Or wouldn’t? Oh, you foolish Captain. I had high hopes for you. I really did. When you came to me with this beautiful specimen, I saw a promising future for you in House Winter. But then I saw how you looked at her while I beat her and that’s when I knew your strength was just a stage act. You are not strong. You are not worthy. In fact, I see you as the weakest link in this House – why we can’t grow stronger. Why we can’t grow out of the shadows>> Draksis glared at Eminaaks all the while stroking the Guardian’s face with his blade. Eminaaks could hear Araeya whimpering, but Draksis just gripped her tighter.

The Ghost had downloaded the schematics for the Winter Lair – or what the Vanguard knew about it – and began searching for anything that could distract Draksis enough to loosen his grip on Araeya so that she could free herself and strike. He found where to trip the Throne Room’s alarm system and left the barrel, careful not to be seen on his way through.

“I highly doubt you shall be missed amongst the Eliksni. You are not worthy to be a part of us. We can’t afford types like you; soft, weak, so easily swayed...” Draksis switched languages and lowered his knife from Araeya’s throat and placed it carefully on the floor next to him. She’d quickly worked out what he was doing and desperately tried to scream at Eminaaks, struggling against the Kell’s force, as he knelt on the floor, head down in shame, but, hand still over her mouth, Draksis pulled her closer to him only muffling her screaming further – he did not want to draw any unnecessary attention to himself, especially from the Kell’s Guard who were likely to interfere with his plans. He reached into his holster to repurpose his hand cannon. He’d never personally executed his own kind before so this would be a new experience for him. He always ordered his Guard to do it instead, but nothing ever stopped Draksis from getting his hands dirty from time to time.

One shot was all it took for Eminaaks to fall. One shot was all it took for Araeya to become paralysed with fear. One shot that echoed through the room and down the corridors and one shot that made Draksis smile. Araeya’s Ghost heard it from near the Throne Room and feared it was too late to save them both. He triggered the alarm system nonetheless and darted back down the hallways as fast as he could, dipping in and out of cover as he traversed the basement.

The alarm sounded so loud back in the basement that Draksis promptly stopped smiling and paused what he was doing to focus on where the sound was coming from. His lack of attention on the situation at hand was enough to loosen his grip on Araeya and she snapped at the opportunity freeing herself from the Kell’s grasp. In the moment, she had forgotten how weak she was from her injuries inflicted by the Kell and she crawled towards Eminaaks, struggling to dodge bullets from Draksis’ gun as he frantically tried to kill her. Everything he had planned with the Hunter had immediately gone out the window the second he lost his grip on her. There was no way he could get her back so that he could test her, so instead, he had to kill her and hope that another opportunity would arise. Learning from this experience, he would choose to be alone with the Guardian from the start so as not to chance another of his Captains falling to the Lightbearers and he would take full advantage of those moments. He was formulating his plan – if he couldn’t kill her, he would go after her. He wouldn’t stop until he held her tightly in his grasp. He wouldn’t stop until he could see her eyes glow once more with the fear he struck into her heart.

Parting was such sweet sorrow, but revenge is best served cold.

Araeya sat up next to Eminaaks and saw that he was still alive, so she laid a hand on his side to comfort him in his pain while Draksis reloaded his weapon. He mustered a little smile.

“It OK. I be fine. I deserve his,” Eminaaks assured Araeya, placing one of his hands on her own, soothing her skin as he had done before. Draksis walked over to them both, sneering and growling.

“I never imagined that one Captain and one Guardian could give me so much grief,” he waved his hand cannon in the air then pointed it at Araeya’s head. Behind her back, she had reached for Eminaaks’ knife that he’d dropped earlier. “I’ll be glad to see the back of you both and I’ll look forward to meeting your Vanguard’s replacement. Maybe they’ll be easier to talk to...”

As Draksis began to pull the trigger and Araeya aimed to plunge the knife into the weak points of Draksis’ chest plate, Araeya’s Ghost rushed into the room and let out a burst of Light to heal her, which in turn pushed Draksis back against the wall. Draksis’ shot flew past them all and into the doorframe and Eminaaks’ knife was lodged in Draksis’ shoulder. He slumped at the back, unconscious.

Araeya sighed with relief. It was over. She was alive. She was free. She was broken. Battered and broken. She wasn’t sure how she would come back from it all or how she would explain this to the Vanguard – that she let a Captain separate her from her Ghost and subdue and kidnap her to be tortured by a Kell for information she didn’t have, then she took her armour off in enemy territory and didn’t remain hidden when she was at her most vulnerable. Everything up to this point could have all been avoided had she just been more Guardian-wise.

She was lost. She didn’t know how she should feel. She looked at herself in all her bruises and her scars, cuts and wounds and she collapsed onto her knees, weak and she cried, confused. Araeya wanted to feel glad that she was free from the Kell – that he couldn’t beat her or stab her. She wanted to feel scared because she was still in the Winter lair and therefore still open for attack from any Fallen and she still felt Draksis’ claws around her neck, suffocating her. All the while she remained in the same room as Draksis, Kell awake or not, she feared for her life – that she wasn’t safe. That he could come after her at any moment. She wanted to feel angry. She clenched her fists as she desperately wanted to kill Draksis where he laid unconscious at the back of the room, but she lacked the energy from her injuries.

She looked over to where Eminaaks laid, also weak and helpless and she buried her head in her hands. She wasn’t upset because she was hurt or because of what had happened, but more that the ‘enemy’ had given everything to try and rectify his wrongs and try to prove that the Fallen aren’t all bad – that they have morals as well – and it had ended in consequences irreversible...wrongfully so.

Araeya was lost in her confusion when her Ghost interrupted.

“We need to move. I think I’ve upset the Kell’s Guard and it won’t be long before they find us and finish what Draksis started,” said the Ghost. Araeya looked down at Eminaaks. He was barely breathing.

“We can’t leave him here. Not anymore and certainly not like this,” Araeya said trying to pick him up. The Ghost scanned him. There was no way he was going to make it back to Earth with them.

“We’ll have to be quick, then," he sighed. We can’t be seen on our own let alone seen with him, and who knows how long Draksis is going to be out. We haven’t got time to finish him off and we don’t have the Vanguard’s consent to do so. We do that here and the City is toast.” With great effort, Araeya carried Eminaaks with her to her ship back at the Ishtar Academy and flew with haste back to the City.

Back at the Tower, Zavala frowned at Araeya for allowing a Fallen in. It took some explaining – time she knew would be better spent elsewhere – but after her ordeal, Zavala insisted they saw to her first. She refused unless Eminaaks was seen first.

Tense hours passed and there was nothing that her Ghost could say or do that would make her any more comfortable. Whatever comfort she may have acquired in waiting was about to be completely shattered;

Eminaaks’ body lay on a table in the Consensus room. Lifeless. Araeya fell to her knees. After everything she had gone through the last two days, this was what hurt the most.

She wept for him that night. Draksis had won...this time. She vowed never to forget Eminaaks’ sacrifice so that she could see to it Draksis wouldn’t be a problem for anyone else; Eliksni or Guardian.


End file.
